The University of San Francisco USF Scholarship: a digital repository @ Gleeson Library | Geschke Center Doctoral Dissertations Theses, Dissertations, Capstones and Projects 2015 The Perceptions of Catholic Elementary School Principals in the Archdiocese of Portland, Oregon Concerning the Catholic Identity and Program Effectiveness of Their Respective Schools Jeannie Marie Ray-Timoney University of San Francisco, jmraytimoney1@gmail.com Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.edu/diss Part of the Educational Leadership Commons Recommended Citation Ray-Timoney, Jeannie Marie, "The Perceptions of Catholic Elementary School Principals in the Archdiocese of Portland, Oregon Concerning the Catholic Identity and Program Effectiveness of Their Respective Schools" (2015).edu/diss/120 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, Capstones and Projects at USF Scholarship: a digital repository @ Gleeson Library | Geschke Center. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized administrator of USF Scholarship: a digital repository @ Gleeson Library | Geschke Center. For more information, please contact repository@usfca. The University of San Francisco THE PERCEPTIONS OF CATHOLIC ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS IN THE ARCHDIOCESE OF PORTLAND, OREGON CONCERNING THE CATHOLIC IDENTITY AND PROGRAM EFFECTIVENESS OF THEIR RESPECTIVE SCHOOLS A Dissertation Presented to The Faculty of the School of Education Department of Leadership Studies Catholic Educational Leadership Program In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Education by Jeannie Ray-Timoney San Francisco May 2015 THE UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO Dissertation Abstract The Perceptions of Catholic Elementary School Principals in the Archdiocese of Portland, Oregon Concerning the Catholic Identity and Program Effectiveness of Their Respective Schools Since their inception in the 1800s in America, Catholic schools have been essential to the ecclesial mission of the Roman Catholic Church and to the formation of students for the common good.
As Catholic schools move further into the 21st century, they face many challenges, including the formation of personnel in their Catholic identity, the high cost of tuition and operations of schools, the preoccupation for financial success of students, and the ongoing rise of secularism in our culture. The USCCB (2005) called upon the Catholic community to address these challenges and to support the advancement of Catholic schools across the nation especially with regard to their Catholic identity and their program effectiveness. This study examined the perceptions of the Catholic elementary school administrators in the Archdiocese of Portland, Oregon regarding the extent to which Catholic identity and program effectiveness were operative in their respective schools. The administrators also identified factors that aided as well as challenged the concepts of Catholic identity and program effectiveness.
Principals also offered recommendations to the Department of Catholic Schools in Portland to address their concerns. This study utilized mixed methods research: an online survey and face-to-face interviews. The study utilized the Catholic Identity Defining Characteristics Staff Survey and the Catholic Identity Program Effectiveness Staff Survey (Ozar & Weitzel-O’Neill, 2012). Of the 39 elementary school principals who received the invitation to participate ii in the study, 33, or 85%, accepted and completed the surveys (N=33).
In addition, a purposeful sample of six administrators that matched the demographics of the general population was selected to complete face-to-face interviews. The collected data revealed that all of the administrators agreed or strongly agreed that Catholic identity and program effectiveness were exhibited in their respective schools. Principals recognized that a supportive pastor and shareholders were vital to their program effectiveness and identity and that strategic planning at the Archdiocesan level was needed. iii This dissertation, written under the direction of the candidate’s dissertation committee and approved by the members of the committee, has been presented to and accepted by the Faculty of the School of Education in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education.
The content and research methodologies presented in this work represent the work of the candidate alone. Ray-Timoney May 8, 2015 Candidate Date Dissertation Committee Dr. Jones May 8, 2015 Chairperson Dr. Mitchell May 8, 2015 iv DEDICATION I dedicate this dissertation to my loving husband Mark and my children, who share the light of Christ with others, to my parents, Nora and Gene Ray, who provided me with a loving, nurturing home and afforded me a Catholic education, and to all of my fellow Catholic school educators, who dedicate themselves to their vocation daily.
v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to take this opportunity to thank the many people that I am blessed to have in my life who have had a profound effect on me and who have supported me throughout my educational journey. I appreciate the Jesuit community of the University of San Francisco, who have sustained the Institute for Catholic Educational Leadership (ICEL) and who recognize the ongoing need for scholarship in the field. I am also grateful for their financial support of Catholic educators, including myself, who would otherwise not be able to afford this education. I also thank my dissertation committee, Dr.
Patricia Mitchell and Ralph Metts S., whose wisdom and input served to challenge me and direct me toward excellence. I appreciate their patient, caring manner and attention to detail that served to guide me constructively toward thoughtful scholarship. I am grateful to Dr. Ben Baab, whose patient instruction led me to understand research methods and statistics in a useable manner.
I am profoundly grateful to my mentor and friend, Dr. Doreen Jones who encouraged and challenged me throughout my entire course of study. She truly has a servant heart, living her vocation in Catholic education and modeling the joy of Christ. I appreciate the early morning meetings, thoughtful summer marathon sessions of writing, dialogue, and revisions, and long Saturday discussions.
Her commitment to the students in the ICEL program is unwavering, and I am appreciative that she continues to share her wisdom with me and other Catholic educators. As a commuting student in a program that attracts individuals from all over the world, I am grateful to the many individuals that I encountered along my journey. You vi have enriched my life with your experiences, wisdom, and friendship. Thank you especially Eileen, Terri, Rick, Heidi, Gary, and Ann.
Most important, I am immensely appreciative of my supportive family. I am blessed with five intelligent, insightful, compassionate, loving children-Vince, Lillie, Nora, Maureen and Maura; four patient, unselfish, kind-hearted daughter and sons-in- law-Cheryl, Nick, Tony, and Michael; four lovable, active grandchildren-Gloria, Marcus, Emma, and Margaret; and my spirited mom, Nora Kelleher Ray. I am especially privileged to have an extremely patient, encouraging, perspicacious, loving husband, Mark. All of your support, encouragement, and patience during my studies provided me the fortitude to cross the finish line.
vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Dissertation Abstract. vi LIST OF TABLES. xiii LIST OF FIGURES. xiv CHAPTER I: THE RESEARCH PROBLEM.
1 Statement of the Problem. 1 Background and Need for Study. 5 Catholic Education in General. 5 Catholic Education in the Archdiocese of Portland.
8 Purpose of the Study. 12 Social Identity Theory. 16 Lewin’s Field Theory. 24 Definition of Terms.
26 CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF LITERATURE. 27 Restatement of the Problem. 29 The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Catholic Identity. 36 Empirical Research in Catholic Identity.
42 Catholic School Effectiveness. 45 Mission and Catholic Identity. 46 The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Standard 1 Relative to Mission and Catholic Identity. 50 viii Church Documents.
50 The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Standard 2 Relative to Mission and Catholic Identity. 53 The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Standard 3 Relative to Mission and Catholic Identity. 56 The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Standard 4 Relative to Mission and Catholic Identity. 58 The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Standard 5 Relative to Governance in Catholic Education.
64 The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Standard 6 Relative to Leadership in Catholic Education. 66 Empirical Research in Governance and Leadership. 72 The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Standard 7 Relative to Academic Excellence. 77 The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Standard 8 Relative to Academic Excellence.
80 The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Standard 9 Relative to Academic Excellence. 81 Empirical Evidence in Academic Excellence. 83 The Works of Catholic School Experts in Concerning Standard 10 Relative to Operational Vitality. 88 ix The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Standard 11 Relative to Operational Vitality.
91 The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Standard 12 Relative to Operational. 95 The Works of Catholic School Experts Concerning Standard 13 Relative to Operational. 96 Empirical Research in Operational Vitality. 100 Summary of Chapter II.
100 CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY. 102 Restatement of the Purpose. 103 Note: Source is Archdiocese of Portland www. 107 Validity and Reliability.
119 Background of Researcher. 120 CHAPTER IV: RESULTS. 124 Summary of the Demographic Variables. 148 Summary of Survey Research Findings.
149 The Study’s Interview Findings. 151 Summary of the Interview Findings. 160 x CHAPTER V: CONCLUSIONS, IMPLICATIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS. 161 Summary of the Study.
169 Mission and Catholic Identity. 170 Governance and Leadership. 181 Mission and Catholic Identity. 181 Governance and Leadership.
183 Mission and Catholic Identity. 184 Governance and Leadership. 185 Research Question 7 and 8. 187 Recommendations for Future Research.
187 Recommendations for Future Practice. 206 Appendix A: National Standards and Benchmarks for Effective Catholic Elementary and Secondary Schools (NSBECS, Ozar & Weitzel-O’Neill, 2012). 207 Appendix B: National Standards and Benchmarks for Effective Catholic Elementary and Secondary Schools (NSBECS, Ozar & Weitzel-O’Neill, 2012). 210 Appendix D: NSBECS Catholic Identity Defining Staff Survey and Catholic Identity Program Effectiveness Staff Survey (2012).
220 Appendix E: SurveyMonkey® adapted NSBECS Catholic Identity Defining Staff Survey and Catholic Identity Program Effectiveness Staff Survey (2012). 229 Appendix F: Reliability and Validity Tables for the NSBECS Staff Surveys (AdvancEd, 2012). 243 Appendix G: Follow-up Interview Questions. 250 xi Appendix H: Letter of Permission from Superintendent Mizia of the Archdiocese of Portland, OR.
252 Appendix I: Letter of Permission for Research-Bishop Peter Smith. 254 Appendix J: Principal’s Invitation to the Survey. 256 Appendix K: Principal’s Invitation for the Follow Up Interview. 258 Appendix L: IRBPHS Permission.
260 xii LIST OF TABLES 1 The Names, Locations, Student Enrollments, and School Types of the 40 Catholic Elementary Schools in the Archdiocese of Portland, Oregon……….103 2 Catholic Identity Defining Characteristics and Their Corresponding Survey Items……………………………………………………………….108 3 The Domains and Standards of the Catholic Identity Program Effectiveness and Their Corresponding Survey Items……………………………………….109 4 The Alignment of the Study’s Research Questions and the Online Survey Items That Address Them………………………………………………………110 5 Reliability Scales for the Four Domains of Program Effectiveness………….112 6 Summary of Means and Standard Deviations for Administrators for the Nine Defining Characteristics of Catholic Identity in Elementary Schools (N=33)…124 7 Summary of Means and Standard Deviations for Administrators by Years of Service for the Nine Defining Characteristics of Catholic Education………….125 8 Summary of Means and Standard Deviations for Administrators by Type of School for the Nine Defining Characteristics of Catholic Education (N=33)….128 9 Summary of Means and Standard Deviations for Administrators by Extent of Knowledge of the NSBECS for the Nine Defining Characteristics of Catholic Education (N=33)………………………………………………………………128 10 Summary of Mean and SD for Administrators for Program Effectiveness in Elementary Schools…………………………………………………………….130 11 Summary of Mean and SD for Administrators by Years of Service for Program Effectiveness in Elementary Schools………………………………………….131 12 Summary of Mean and SD for Administrators by Type of School for Program Effectiveness in Elementary Schools………………………………………….131 13 Summary of Mean and SD for Administrators by Extent of Knowledge of the NSBECS for Program Effectiveness in Elementary Schools………………….132 14 Correlations Between Mission and Catholic Identity, Governance and Leadership, Academic Excellence, and Operational Vitality………………….